Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. When Sophia leaves her small town to move to the city and attend university, her parents and boyfriend are worried....and presumably for good reason. The roommate she has never met and her friends are very different from Sophia and don't seem to be good influences. The storyline made me a bit uncomfortable for a few different reasons, but I am going to continue the series to see if things turn out better than they currently seem.

I loved the artwork, and I love how Tokyopop has been including colored illustrations in the title pages of their manga lately. But the story of this title seemed a bit cliche for me. Nothing really stood out. You had the typical "good girl" who has never been away from home, never out from under her parents' thumbs, who has never done anything wild in her life. Then you have the roommate who is the complete opposite: wild and inconsiderate. It's a nightmare that comes true for a lot of people, getting trapped with a roommate you clash with. It rather annoyed me that the main character tried to fit in with that crowd instead of being true to herself. It just feels like a story I've seen before many times, and I didn't really connect with any of the characters. So even while the art is pretty and I'm sure she'll find her place eventually and figure out who she is, I'm not sure I really care enough about her journey in this first volume to see where life leads her.

3.5 stars.

This is your typical shoujo manga with everything happening all at once when the story starts and it's all overly dramatic but you just can't stop reading.

The artstyle is really good and I liked each chapter opening art and the Chibis. Story and character wise it's cliche, typical, troupe and I can already predict what's gonna happen in the next chapter but as with anyone who loves to read shoujo manga, it's addicting.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

I found this a really interesting manga compared to the ones I have read in the past. It’s been a while since I read the book but this one stuck with me. The main character struggles with extreme anxiety but she is determined to be independent and move into her own place. At first her new roommates are portrayed as punks and trashy people, but they grow closer and treat her better than her family. Her parents and boyfriend are overprotective to the point of toxicity. I fully enjoyed this volume and look forward to reading further in the series

I love reading graphic books and manga! They are so enjoyable and I love the art work in them! This one was a fast read and highly recommend this. I will be picking up the other volumes in this story. Loved it.

ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I went into Deep Scar by Rossella Sergi completely blind and let the story and the art speak for itself rather than checking up on other people's first impressions to give me an idea of what this is about, and I found myself pleasantly surprised.

This reminds me of the shoujo manga I read as a teenager, both in the amounts of drama, as well as the drawing style. We follow Sofia as she moves to a new place for school, and in the process get to know her, her boyfriend Luca, her new roommate Veronica, and the tall, dark, handsome other guy in the picture - Lorenzo. All were easily distinguishable from one another and I found the linework and panel set up very clean. I sympathized with some of the characters, but especially Sofia struck me as a little too naive, her actions as a bit too predictable at times.
Nevertheless, the ending left me curious about how the story will continue and I would recommend this to anyone possibly just starting out or wanting to come back to the genre.

This is one of those manga that you pick up at the kindle store for like 99 cents and just binge read the series. Not because they're great but because they are so over the top with angst that you just gotta know where this train wreck ends.

This is fun little story. It's really just build up, hinting at something deeper and, I would assume, darker. The art is a bit of an older style, but very well done and goes perfectly with the storyline. Some parts seem a little confusing, or a bit of a strange or over the top reaction. But again, I think some of that may be due to secrets that will be revealed later in the series. It may all make sense later on. It would take a few more volumes to really form an opinion, but it's an interesting enough intro that I'll likely seek them out!

I’m overjoyed at the return of Tokyopop! I went into this manga blind, having no idea what to expect. I am really surprised at how likable it is so far since I usually only read manga-style comics by Japanese or Korean artists, so this being a manga of French origin is a bit of a change of pace! The English translation is very well polished, perfectly easy to understand.

The first thing I want to mention is how much the story line resembles romances in the New Adult novels genre, but dodges the annoying things that put me off from many of that genre. I think for people who’ve never read manga-style comics before but enjoy contemporary romances, this could be a decent entry point.

Lets start with the main character, Sofia. She is the wholesome and virginal, “good girl” type. But she doesn’t feel superior to other girls and seems open to cultivating friendships with them. Also, her family situation seems complex- her parents give me bad vibes, they’re smothering and overprotective even though Sofia is entering college. There are definitely negative elements to her being as naive as she comes across, its not flaunted or set up as a way to make her “better” than other girls and she strikes me as someone who wants to evolve and grow. I definitely want to find out more about her.

She has a roommate, Veronica. This girl is the classic bad girl archetype and Sofia’s opposite. She comes off as prickly at first but given the effort put toward her character design and dialogue I am hoping that there will be decent character development for her. Seems to be leading that way.

Sofia has a boyfriend named Luca. They seem to have a long history and he is protective over her. He comes off as pushy and needy. I’m getting signals that they will probably break up at some point but so far I kind of like him despite his shortcomings. Maybe it’s the character design. The guys all look incredible and one isn’t favored over another in drawing style, and unfortunately, Luca is the most aesthetically my type.

Lorenzo – The tall, dark, handsome, brooding type. It’s very evident that he has some type of dark past and/or trauma. At first I thought he was going to be a sort of bad boy archetype but he’s really not that easy to pigeonhole and has some surprising moments of thoughtfulness. For example, he seems to be trying to avoid Sofia because he considers himself a bad guy. He gives me insta-love vibes, which I usually don’t care much for but if it’s one-sided that’s a little fresh and different. I hope they have some type of history together (childhood friends I hope, since I love the childhood friends-to-lovers trope.)

So far I’m pretty interested in the characterization and am curious to see how it will go. There is the mystery of why Sofia’s family has sheltered her so severely. I really hope there won’t be cheating as an element in future volumes but things could really go anywhere. There is a lot of room for the story line to blossom in different ways.

But at its core this is a romance, leaning toward a love triangle.

So onto the art style. I LOVE IT. It’s just beautiful in a very classic girly manga way, but I’m already a huge fan of shoujo (girls) manga art style. The lines are clean, details like eyes and hair are given to prettily excessive design. The characters are distinct (the stark differences in shading and hair colors for the main cast helps with that though) and subtle emotions are well-conveyed. For example, there is a scene where Sofia is uncomfortable about something but feigning being fine about it and you can tell this quite easily from a few little added lines to her expression.

I also want to make note of the panels and pacing. This volume was super fast-paced with uncluttered panels. I zipped through this very fast, and felt like there was sufficient dialogue nonetheless.

All in all I am really quite pleased with this first volume and it did pretty much everything it was trying to do, rightly. I’m curious about the characters, their back stories, and what directions the romance is going to go. I know there’s at least a second volume and really hoping there will be more than that. I already have things I hope will happen and characters that I favor, and the art is lovable.

Overall Rating – 9/10

Why You Should Try It – If you’ve ever liked manga for female audiences (shoujo manga, josei manga) and are totally up for some nice polished art of that style or a romantic contemporary comic in general. The story seems traditional but has a lot of areas where deeper development might be made. It’s just fun.

Why You Might Not Like It – The heroine is passive and meek, you might prefer a different series if looking for a more vibrantly ambitious type of heroine. If you're very well-versed in manga, this title might come off as nothing too special.

**Many thanks to Netgalley and Tokyopop for providing an e-ARC of this title for review.**

I received this manga-style graphic novel in exchange of an honest review.

Now that my vacation is all over and I am home again I can start with all my ARCs, and I got plenty. First up is this one. Not only because it releases tomorrow, but also because I am just in love with the cover. It is gorgeous. I am also loving the blurb, I am guessing I can expect some fun boarding school (or university/college) stuff to happen + some romance. I am also curious about the title. Deep scar? Oh my.

I will probably write down my feelings as I read and then put them together to make something that seems a bit readable. :P!

Wow, interesting meeting between the girls, I wasn't a big fan of the roommate Veronica, that is just not a joke one makes when you introduce/meet someone new. Not to mention that, while I can understand that Lorenzo + Veronica are dating or at some way doing things, it may not be the best to give him keys to an apartment when you know you are about to get a new roommate, but maybe that is just me. I thought it was highly strange and I also felt a bit worried about Sofia.
Veronica keeps being a total bitch towards our MC. Even suggesting/telling her to break up with her boyfriend. Also holy wow, judgement much? So what if Sofia is 22 and still a virgin, why is that a bad thing? Who cares? Not everyone is ready to screw around at 15 or 16 or even earlier. Some people want to wait for the right guy, or the right moment, or just don't want to have sex. And later on she makes even more dickish remarks regarding Sofia. I don't get what her problem is. Just because someone is totally different from you doesn't mean you should just make such remarks.

Wow, what happened there? He suddenly went berserk on her for no reason. I am also curious about why he is acting this way, not just with his bad boy attitude but also why he seems so adverse to Sofia.

Um, half a day just passed? What is up with this? It seemed to be much longer... especially given some events happening. *is so confused* And later again (after the event that I talk about in the spoiler) it is just a day? Ehhhhhhhhh.

Oh no. No. No. NOPE. I am not amused now. <spoiler> So Lorenzo just enters the apartment, enters Sofia's bedroom and just pulls her away from her phone and almost touches her in a very bad way. And then he has the effing guts to look wounded. What the hell? Also, I can slightly understand her not wanting to tell her boyfriend, but it is not your fault that you were almost assaulted by that guy, talk to your man, let him know. Yes, he will probably try to help you out, but come on. You don't feel safe. And of course you will keep thinking about it. It isn't something small that someone enters your bedroom and holds you like that. </spoiler>

Also while I do like Luca at times, I did think he was a bit overdoing it, plus I wasn't happy with how he seemed to distrust his girlfriend. And I also wasn't a fan how he didn't seem to get that Sofia wanted to stay. That sure, shitty things happened, but that she is 22 years old and finally out on her own. Same goes for her parents. Holy hell. Helicopter parents much? They overreact so much, and just based on what Luca is telling them. Parents, please.

And really, this whole timeline and everything just doesn't make any sense. This is all happening in a day? How? It feels like a month at least has gone by, but instead everything is being crammed into one day and it just doesn't work.

I am just groaning at this love triangle. *sighs* I HATE love triangles. I HATE THEM SO MUCH.

And oh hey, cliffhanger. *sighs some more* I guessed we would get this one, given how Lorenzo acts and how Sofia seems to gravitate to him. Not to mention that there is this whole dark period daddy dearest was talking about. But will I be reading this one further? EHHHHHHMMM, not sure. Again, the time was an issue, it felt like things were crammed too much in one day/two days while it all felt like a month passed given the events. I can't read Sofia. Lorenzo is just urghhh. The parents and Luca are horrendous.... So I am unsure if I will read further. Maybe yes, maybe no. On the one hand I am also curious about the whole events that happened to Sofia.

I also love the manga-styled art, it is really pretty. I especially love the character designs (and then Veronica/Lorenzo as top contenders).

Beautifully drawn, beautiful story. Really enjoyed this one!! Glad to see Tokyo Pop having a resurgence

I've read many Shojo mangas in the past and if you like this genre (shojo manga), then you may enjoy Deep Scar. It has many similar elements of most shojo mangas - romance, drama, peer-pressure, and a lot of emotional ups and downs between the two main characters.

Deep Scar is a romance at heart, but it seems the drama will revolve around the other love interest, Lorenzo. The author does a good job drawing out the tension and suspense of how Lorenzo knows Sofia (even though she doesn't), and why he is trying to keep his distance from her - even though he obviously doesn’t want to. Not much is revealed about Lorenzo in this volume. He is still somewhat of a mystery.

I would consider this manga more New Adult rather than Young Adult because the main characters are not in high school. Sofia is in her first year of college and is living with a roommate. She is a reserved girl who has an innocent relationship with her boyfriend Luca. But, you can foresee the drama that will unfold between Sofia, Luca, and Lorenzo, which is what will keep the reader interested in what happens next.

On the downside, the characters do act a little over the top in some cases which is more appropriate when it's for comedic purposes. But, since there is no comedy in this story it just didn't fit well.

The artwork is of good quality and you can follow the storyline very well. Overall, Deep Scar is an interesting new manga series that will appeal to readers that enjoy young adult/new adult romance manga. It's clear the themes of this storyline will be more "adult" in nature as the series continues; however, there is nothing explicit in this manga so far. For ages 17 and up.

*A DRC was given for an honest review.

A good first book in the series. There are hints of dark pasts for both the protagonist and her potential love interest. There are also hints that the "mean roommate" has hidden depths. I like to hold off on a verdict about the series as a whole until I get a few volumes in but I would pick up the next volume.

Despite being written and illustrated by an Italian author, [book:Deep Scar] reads like a classic shojo manga from the late 1990's to early 2000's. The artwork reminds me a bit of [author:Wataru Yoshizumi]'s work or [author:Yuu Watase]'s earlier work.

The story itself left something to be desired though.

Sofia is starting a new independent life at a new university and city. As her soon-to-be long-distance boyfriend, Luca, helps her move into her new apartment, she meets her roommate for the first time and realizes that they have nothing in common (Sofia is a quiet introvert, whereas her roommate Veronica is a wild partygoer). Sofia also meets Veronica's friend Lorenzo who is a good looking guy who seems to have a (huge and creepy) thing for Sofia. Naturally, this worries Luca and makes Sofia feel uncomfortable.

I didn't like Veronica (too blunt and pretty rude) or Lorenzo (so creepy and weird). Nicola (one of Veronica's friends) seems interesting and I quite like Sofia and Luca.

The pacing is also <i>really</i> slow and I'm not sure I'm intrigued enough by the characters to carry on with this series.

It's been several years since I last read a manga book but the cover art style reminded me of the handful of series' that I really enjoyed, so I thought I'd give this a go.

It starts with Sofia moving into a new apartment as she heads off to University and meeting her room-mate, Veronica, for the first time. They are complete opposites. Then we have Lorenzo, Veronica's close friend who's always in and out of their room.

He is a little tormented by something in this volume and continuously pushes Sofia away while always doing nice things for her. I have a feeling they knew each other in the past considering that little bit of a cliff-hanger ending. You can clearly see that something is going to happen between them in future volumes but I don't think it will be without issues.

I loved the little images used as chapter breaks, and the chapter starts with the individual characters on them were pretty cool, too. As was the bonus content with the profiles of the characters at the end.

Some parts of the storyline seemed a little OTT, like her parents reaction to what her room-mate looked like, but I'm assuming their reaction will be explained in future issues.

I will keep my eye out for future volumes of this.

**Disclaimer: I was given an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

The cliffhanger at the end!! I honestly didn't expect to like this manga as much as I did. Sofia, of course, is your typical, naive protagonist, and Lorenzo is the mysterious tall, dark, and handsome potential love interest???

I will definitely add this series to my watch list for the next volume.

Well that for sure was a fun, short read that left me wanting for more. That cliffhanger at the end, I tell ya, did not like it at all. Now all I want to know is what happens next. I've read more than thousand mangas and it never gets old. I love the artists style for this one and the story itself is not bad. It definitely keeps my attention. Although I find the heroine a bit naive, but overall not dull. Not to mention the hot new guy. I guess I will just have to wait for the next volume to find out what's next in the store for these two.